Trains and Dreaming

I'm not sure why, but I've been doing some vivid dreaming over the last few days. Maybe it was that really high fever that I was running, or maybe I have allot on my mind these days.
So, yesterday I was dreaming about being on railroad tracks. I have no idea why I was there and it seemed like someone else was there with me. The next thing I know there is a train barrelling down the tracks straight toward me. In the dream I was paralyzed. I could not move, even though I knew that I had to or the train was going to plow right into me. I kept yelling at myself "move, Suzi". Then, as dreams will do, the scene morphed from a flat railroad track into a track running on a bridge. It didn't seem very high, but to get off the tracks I was going to have to jump. I still couldn't move...I couldn't figure out how far I'd fall and I couldn't figure out how to crawl under the tracks to safety. All the while the train is coming closer and closer. It had even started blowing it's horn. Finally, at the last second, I must have jumped. The train was rumbling overhead and I was clinging to the beams under the track. It was at this point I awoke...it was like a scene out of an old western movie.
I suppose that there is some significance of trains in dream analysis. Maybe I'm afraid of being derailed in my current life. The real question is by what or whom??? Or, maybe I need to be able to "jump" into something that I've been afraid to start, but feel paralyzed to change. Could be a combo of the two...or neither. Maybe, I'll "google" dream analysis and trains!

Longing to be somewhere warm today.....

Oh, to be sitting on this beach in Maui when there's snow falling at home. I just wish I was there.


Sipping a Mai Tai!!!!

Working Night Shift Sleep Quandry

I've worked as a nurse for many years...and recently started working straight nights (11pm-7:30am). I'm trying to decide if this is a good choice or not. I currently find myself up at 3:00 in the morning on my day off...having slept the afternoon and evening away. I've been watching tv, surfing the internet, and not really doing anything productive. It does get hard to turn my schedule around on the weekends. But, that brings me to one of the benefits of this shift, I work Sunday through Thursday, which means I have every weekend off. That's something that most nurses can't say and would envy! I also get a significant shift differential, and have noticed a nice increase in my paycheck. I don't have to put up with much of the "politics" of the workplace. I could come up with several other benefits...but, sleep, that's the problem! Do I keep the same sleep hours on my days off...maintain the sleep during the day/up at night schedule, or change my days back to "normal" on my days off??? I've tried both and can't seem to decide. I really can't sleep all day on the weekends...or I wouldn't have any time to spend with friends and family. But, I seem to lose Fridays by sleeping much of the day hours away and go to bed that night to be up on Saturday morning. Hmmmm, that's the quandry...

View from Space

Here is a satellite view of President Obama's inauguration from GeoEye.com.

Impressive.

I don't know the final count of those that attended. But, I'm sure it will turn out to be historic, as was everything about this day.

Check out GeoEye's website...there are many other images to view.

Friends

I have been thinking recently about friendships and how they change with time. Some people in my life are what I think of as "casual" friends. That does not mean that they don't have an important place in my life, but they may not "always" be part of it. They are the co-workers, the acquaintances, the neighbors, etc. that we call "friends". These people are the ones that I might do superficial things with: going out to lunch, to the movies, out on the town, to the gym, on a bike ride, or meet for a beer to watch the game. They are there to help me have fun and enjoy life. They usually don't require much effort or maintenance.

Then there is that special group of individuals, the lifelong friends, that make up the canvass of my life...actually they are more importantly the paint on the canvass of my life. I do the same fun things with this group. But, I also comfort them when they lose a loved one, encourage them in times of trouble, cheer them on with each success and turn to them in times of need. They may not be with me every day. But, I can't imagine a time when they won't be here with and for me. These are the members of my family that I have chosen for myself.

So why then does it often seem easier for me to tell my "casual" friends that I appreciate them, respect them and enjoy their company than my lifelong friends. I started this out by thinking about how friendships change. Now that I've pondered this topic a bit, it occurs to me that some of my dearest friends started out in that "casual" category. I really should get back to telling them how much I value them in my life....